We’ll be in with a shout of promotion, says Lee

Chesterfield goalkeeper Tommy Lee believes the Spireites will be “there or there abouts” this season in League One, following their play-off heartbreak last season.

The Spireites, under previous boss Paul Cook, lost out to eventual winner Preston in the semi-finals of the play-offs, and saw Cook subsequently leave to join Portsmouth in the summer.

New boss Dean Saunders managed to persuade Lee, three times Chesterfield’s player of the year, to sign a new contract at the Proact and the goalkeeper said: “I’m very pleased to have signed.

“The gaffer came in and he spoke to me pre-pre-season, he asked me what I thought of the club and I listened to his ideas, the players he wanted to keep and bring in and it felt like a positive place to be playing football.”

Lee has been at the club since 2008 and most summers has been linked to a possible move away.

He added: “When you only have a year left on your contract there’s always some thought in your mind that you may leave but I’ve just moved to the area and that played a part in the deal.

“So I’m now just looking forward to getting started properly this season.

“There’s a positive vibe around the club, we lost out last season by a small margin, so with a bit more cutting edge and being a bit tighter at the back we’ll there or thereabouts. We set standards last season and we’re going to set more standards this season, it’s probably a tougher league this season but we’ll be in with a shout.”